Upper St. Clair School District’s Post

FL's Best Middle Schools Ranked In New Analysis FLORIDA — Doral Academy of Technology in Miami-Dade County is the best public middle school in Florida, according to a new ranking from U.S. News & World Report. U.S. News researchers based the 2025 ranking of the nation’s best public middle schools on publicly available data from the U.S. Department of Education. The researchers analyzed 59,128 middle schools for the report. Read more to see the list of top 25 public middle schools in Florida: https://lnkd.in/eCmtwzRT

Do you know where the top-rated schools in Connecticut are? For many young and growing families, choosing the right school district is crucial when purchasing a home. Sure, you might know a few standout schools across the state. But having a comprehensive list of top-performing schools can help you make a more informed decision about the best area for your family. This article by Rich Kirby on Patch.com does just that! It outlines the 50 best public schools in Connecticut, offering insights into what makes each one exceptional. Want to know more about the best schools near you? Check out the full list and start exploring your options! https://lnkd.in/e69hxxbN

Yesterday, the New York State Education Department presented a new vision for State Graduation Requirements. This November, the Department is expected to present its related state department implementation plan. Other states looking to similarly move toward modernizing graduation requirements and measures can access two reports that helped inform years of rigorous analysis and deliberation underlying NYSED's efforts. The reports, curated by the Region 2 Comprehensive Center at NYSED's request, reflect what is known about how other states approach graduation measures and requirements, including performance based assessments. They are accessible here: https://lnkd.in/erehmR-B #R2CC WestEd #GraduationRequirements #GraduationMeasures

Toronto District School Board director of education Colleen Russell-Rawlins painted a rosy picture for the future of Toronto’s schools: more teachers, clean classrooms, proper supplies. The reality? Trustees slashed $17 million to “balance” a broken system. https://lnkd.in/gcXMfusy

Pittsburgh Public School officials on Tuesday got their first look at several different scenarios that could drastically change the district’s footprint in coming years. The scenarios, presented by Massachusetts-based education consulting firm Education Resource Strategies during the district’s education committee meeting, are the next steps in Pittsburgh Public’s facilities utilization plan, a blueprint that could lead to the closure and consolidation of some school buildings as PPS faces declining enrollments and a growing budget deficit. Under the proposal, 16 existing schools would close, 14 would change their grade reconfiguration, six magnet schools would phase out and become neighborhood schools and five new programs would open in existing buildings

Register for an important webinar on the future of education for high school students who have more opportunities to choose to pursue a college degree or take the pathway to prepare for a rewarding occupation - There are exciting things happening for high school students in Connecticut Register for the webinar to find out

About 17% of Texas school districts are considered “severely” underfunded, with funding gaps exceeding 40% of what is considered adequate. This level of funding is associated with reduced student achievement ratings. Read the full report: https://bit.ly/4fw9jTo

A staggering 65 percent of third- through eighth-graders in Fort Worth failed to meet minimum grade-level standards in core subjects such as reading, math, and science. This is nothing short of an educational catastrophe. Fort Worth mayor Mattie Parker captured the urgency when she said, “This moment calls for visionary, student-centered leadership that sets ambitious goals, crafts a strategic plan for academic excellence, and ensures every taxpayer dollar is spent wisely.” We couldn’t agree more. Even more troubling, this failure rate marks a one percentage-point drop in proficiency from the previous year, underscoring a worrying trend in student achievement that is raising alarms among local leaders. Even the highest-performing city council district (district 10) saw just 49 percent of students meeting basic grade-level academic standards. Mayor Parker, in a letter addressed to the school-board members, pointed out Fort Worth’s consistent underperformance compared with other major Texas districts. For example, Fort Worth students trail eleven percentage points behind those in Dallas, 14 points behind Houston, and 18 points behind Brownsville. Those numbers starkly illustrate the need to reimagine our approach to education and embrace bold, transformative policies that empower parents and recognize the unique needs of every student.  Our CEO Lisa Nelson dove into this crucial issue in a National Review OpEd she coauthored with famed economist Stephen Moore. Read their OpEd at https://lnkd.in/gcAy4z4w #Education #Texas #Freedom

In the foreword of my new book, The Enduring Promise of America’s Great City Schools, former US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan writes, “Running a large, urban school district is among the more challenging jobs in America. It is challenging enough for school superintendents to support learning and drive positive outcomes for increasingly diverse student populations. School leaders must also ensure that kids are safe, healthy, and well fed, that their parents feel welcomed and included, that their teachers feel valued and motivated, and that school board members and elected officials who provide the funding feel the funding is justified and the results are positive. These challenges are exponentially greater when the student population approaches that of a midsize American city.” The new book describes how and why some city school systems make more academic progress than others, and it lays out a path forward for urban public education.

Late last month, the Pittsburgh School District received new recommendations from a consulting firm in Boston that will guide their updated Facilities Utilization Plan. The plan dictates how the school district should approach changes to grade configurations throughout schools, consolidation of schools, and the closing of specific school buildings. There is no doubt that this plan will have adverse outcomes for majority Black schools in the city, where students have been historically and systemically disenfranchised and underfunded. Too often concerns like declining enrollment or poor academic achievement will be cited in school closures, with little account given to the racially imbalanced institutional standards that have hampered public education for decades. We demand that the city of Pittsburgh put a plan in place to ensure that relocated students have a guided transition and understand the full reasons for the move. Make your voice heard on potential Pittsburgh school closures and visit bit.ly/pghschools